NCDC tasks pharmacists on rational prescription of antimicrobials

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention ( NCDC) has enjoined pharmacists across the country to increase efforts towards surveillance and rational prescription of antimicrobials. Antimicrobials usually called drugs or medicines are substances used to treat, kill or stop a wide variety of infectious diseases in humans and animals such as antibiotics, antivirals, antifungal […]

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention ( NCDC) has enjoined pharmacists across the country to increase efforts towards surveillance and rational prescription of antimicrobials.

Antimicrobials usually called drugs or medicines are substances used to treat, kill or stop a wide variety of infectious diseases in humans and animals such as antibiotics, antivirals, antifungal and antiparasitic

The national Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
focal point for human health, Dr Ridwan Yahaya, gave the advise yesterday in Abuja during the Surveillance and Prescription Support for Antimicrobial Stewardship Resources Capacity Building (SPARC) – Data for Action in Country Delivery (Nigeria) In-Person Training, organized in collaboration with the NCDC and other partners.

Dr Yahaya who is also NCDC ‘s AMR programme manager, said doing so was critical to reducing the burden of AMR in the country. AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to antimicrobial medicines.

He said that is why the stakeholders were brainstorming on a coordinated set of actions or interventions to ensure rational use of antimicrobials among humans, animals, as well as how it is used at healthcare facilities.

He enjoined community pharmacists and those in hospitals to go back to the principle of drug prescriptions and dispensing.

He said, “Because the national policy on drug use, stipulates that antibiotics are ‘prescription only’. So no pharmacist is expected to actually dispense antimicrobials without prescription, whether in the hospital or in the pharmacy. So let’s go back to the principles of prescription and dispensing. And of course, at the country level, we are working together with regulatory bodies to see how we can educate and create more awareness among community pharmacists on rational use of antimicrobials, because the community have easy access to these pharmacists, and even the patent medicine vendors.”

Pharmacist Mashood Lawal, country coordinator of the Surveillance and Prescribing support for Antimicrobial Stewardship Resource Capacity building (SPARC) programme, and member of the World Health Organization ( WHO) task force on antimicrobial resistance survivors, said participants were drawn from health facilities across the country .

He lamented that some medical professionals have abandoned the rational use of drugs, noting that addressing AMR requires sensitizing medical doctors, pharmacists, nurses, medical laboratory scientists, among others to ensure teamwork.

He said the participants were also sensitized on the importance of using data and presenting it as evidence to the management of their hospitals.

The Chairman of the Governing Council, Pharmacy Council of Nigeria ( PCN) , Wosilat Giwa, said carelessness in handling antimicrobials has resulted in loss of lives.

She said, “But with the stakeholders and committed individuals gathered here, I urge you to ensure that we can do better. Whatever support we have now for data collection, we must go further to determine the best ways to use and manage antimicrobial agents.”